


Tricks of the Trade

by TellThemNaegi



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), College AU, F/M, Fluff, Kyoko is so Done, Leon Just Wants to Play Video Games, Sayaka is a Tease, makoto is dense, valentine's day fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-14 20:26:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29424534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TellThemNaegi/pseuds/TellThemNaegi
Summary: A Sunday outing goes right in ways everyonebutMakoto expected.
Relationships: Kuwata Leon & Naegi Makoto, Maizono Sayaka/Naegi Makoto
Comments: 5
Kudos: 32





	Tricks of the Trade

Makoto was born a giver. He liked to see others as happy as himself. His friends worry that he's easily taken advantage of. The more direct ones just call him a doormat. Maybe that was true. Maybe it wasn't. What Makoto does know, was that there were a few people in his life that he couldn't say 'no' to for better or worse.

Three were members of his family. Numbers four and five were two aggressive friends in his year – a blonde and a lavender-haired detective-in-training. The sixth was his best friend. Finally was the girl he's crushed on since they crossed paths at the start of the semester.

"Sayaka!" He yells, waving his hand in the air to grab her attention amidst the dozens of others crowding the subway station. His fresh sneakers squeak loudly until stopping in front of white heels.

"Sorry . . . for . . . being late!" He says between pants. His back hunches over, fingers gripping his black trousers. A series of mis-happenings pushed him over the allotted meeting time by a full 15 minutes!

Hazel eyes seek forgiveness from his partner for the evening. Sayaka Maizono. She was his senior by one year, but anyone could tell they were world’s apart from style alone. Sayaka’s floaty, off-shoulder top was a lighter blue than her hair.

Powdery – He thought. The twin straps hanging on exposed skin formed walls around a necklace as silvery-white as the miniskirt that completed the outfit.

. . . He felt underdressed.

"Don’t worry about it. I just got here 5 minutes ago." Sayaka said, without a flicker of annoyance on her face.

“R-Really?”

“I’m allowed to slip up once in a while, y’know?” No, truth be told. He and Sayaka aren’t all _that_ well acquainted. Not many conversations that weren’t one-sided. Thanks to his shyness, their interactions mostly consisted of occasional waves and hellos. “Not this time though. I came late because I figured you would be too from what I’ve heard . . . "

Shot through the heart. "I'm sorry!" The strap of his beige satchel threatens to slip from his shoulders.

"Apology accepted." 

Sayaka’s gaze flies up and down. White heels click-clack closer to him. Her fingers latch onto his cardigan, straightening the fabric that had come lopsided from running. With a sly smile, she said "Yup, you're definitely cuter in blue."

His cheeks bloom rose-pink and knows she said it on the purpose to evoke that specific reaction. It'd be wrong thinking she was sincere. It would also be wrong to think this was a lovely Sunday date because . . .

"I'm counting on you today, Makoto. Let's find the best birthday gift ever."

Sayaka (probably) liked someone else.

Leon Kuwata was many things, a goof, a self-proclaimed charmer, a rising star baseball star, but Makoto knew him most as his best friend. Leon had picked Makoto up like a stray on his first day of college and introduced the mousey adolescent to his circle of friends. As far as Makoto knew, Leon was the coolest guy on Earth.

Makoto was also often told he didn’t know all that much.

"What are you thinking about?" Sayaka asks.

"What present to get. I think anything sports-related is out." Makoto wouldn’t be surprised if Leon threw a gifted baseball right back in his face for that offense.

She giggled. "Probably. Thanks for helping me out. I know it was weird of me to ask, but you were the only one I could turn to."

Wide, innocent eyes stare at Sayaka.

"Yup, it could _only_ be you." She responds with a quick nod.

Makoto buries his anxieties to meet the expectations thrust upon him. "I'll be honest. I don't think Leon has any specific tastes." Unless we were talking about buying him a girl. "He's . . . very general and liberal with what he likes."

“Whatever’s popular with the guys then?"

"Yeah. I'm not sure if that makes our job easier or harder."

"Lucky for us, we've got just the person to ask right here."

"Who?"

She twirls her index finger and points at him.

"Should've seen that coming." Although comparing him to Leon was a little out there.

The duo wander the underground mall. With no set destination in mind, they hop from one store to the other. Sayaka left the decision-making up to Makoto for some reason. It seemed like a poor choice.

After giving it much thought, Makoto settles on an urban clothing store.

"Hmm, so this is what you like?" Sayaka locked onto Makoto and the black Jimmy Decay T-shirt in his hands.

"Not exactly? He’s a flashy guy so this is right up his alley.”

Sayaka grimaces. "Oh yeah, I forgot Leon's still going through that ‘I want to be a rockstar’ wannabe phase. I don't feel like encouraging him on that front."

“A no-go then.” He places the fabric back on the hangar.

Sayaka had a good point earlier. It’s smarter to think of what he would like _from a girlfriend_. Problem: He'd never had one. But if Makoto _had_ to self-insert into Leon’s shoes . . . he’d be ecstatic to receive anything from the bluenette.

Makoto thoughtfully rubs his chin. There was an item he passed by in the accessory section. “Come with me for a sec.” He guides Sayaka to a tray of wristwatches and bracelets. Makoto directs her to the bracelet with intertwined gold and red threads.

“It looks handcrafted. I like it.” She asks.

“It’s called an Everlasting Bracelet. I hear it symbolizes long-lasting relationships. If my girlfriend gave me one, I’d be thrilled. I’m sure Leon would love it from you.” He explains.

For a single frame, Sayaka’s brows draw close, quizzical. It’s gone in the next shot, replaced by her lips twitching upwards. She turns away so all he could see were her trembling shoulders.

“W-What’d I say?”

She quickly recovered, “Nothing. I’ll take it.” Pink-painted nails steal away the bracelet. She dangles the accessory overhead with a pleased smile. “Could you buy this for me, Makoto?”

“Sure.” There’s no hesitation on his part. He came here to shop with her. He’d been prepared to pay too.

“Great. Now we need one more.” She swipes a second off the glass.

“You need two?” He cocks his head.

Sayaka wags her fingers. “As a backup. Don’t worry, I’ll pay for everything else from hereon. I insist.”

They argue back and forth, with the idol coming out the winner.

“Let’s look in the tech department.” Makoto shrugs and walks 5 feet. He stops near the front of the store. A stuffed monochrome-themed bear lies on the counter. “Cute.” He mutters under his breath. It might make a decent gift to send back home for Komaru’s birthday.

"It doesn't fit Leon's image." Makoto glitches at Sayaka’s voice. The campus idol leans over him to scope out the bear.

"N-Nothing to see here." He squeaks at how close her face was.

Sayaka looks between him and the stuffed animal just before grinning widely. "I'll pick this one out too." She buys the damn bear.

"I thought you said Leon wouldn't like it?" A mental image of Leon cuddling a stuffed animal surfaced. Makoto shuddered and buried it deep.

"I’ll save this for Valentines." She didn’t say any more.

They settled on the bracelet. That should have been all but Sayaka eagerly drags Makoto over for lunch.

He's too nervous to speak while sitting across her.

"We don't talk much. Just the two of us I mean." Sayaka renews the conversation. Deep marine blue bores holes through his own hazel. “Maybe you’re not comfortable around me?”

“It’s not that!” He dispels the-not-totally-untrue notion. “Other way around, really. I’ve always figured you saw me as the kid who hangs around Leon all the time.”

“You _do_ give that ‘lost puppy’ vibe.”

He falls into embarrassed silence.

“I’ll stop, I promise.” Sayaka laughs into her hand. “How about this? Tell me about yourself. Where are you from?"

“My hometown is a small island in Osaka, away from the mainland.”

“That far?” The intrigue slips out.

“Yeah. The start of this year was the first time I’d ever left the island.” Homesickness was never far these days.

Sayaka hums at the information. “What’s it like?”

He’s more than happy to share. With a big bright smile, he says “Sunny, lots of trees, lakes and farms. The community’s like a huge family and the people are really friendly.” The friendliest. “But I dunno . . . I’ve always been interested in the city. Now that I’m here, it’s so overwhelming.”

Sayaka nods in understanding. Her lips form a thin line. “Just . . . be careful. Leon’s a dumbass. You’ll get into trouble if you listen to _everything_ he says.”

That settles it. She definitely thinks he’s some country hick.

“Noted.” Makoto looks down to his lap, reflecting on the many requests Leon’s made of him. “For reference, what’s the upper limit?”

She didn’t like the sound of that. “You haven’t done anything . . . dangerous, have you?”

“There were a few times when he asked me to write papers for him.” He spies a twitch of slender blue brows, followed by a deep frown. “I-I wouldn’t have done it, normally. But he was failing his courses and it was the least I could do to help. . .”

“One of those classes wouldn’t happen to be political science, would it?”

“I think it was.”

He nearly jumps when she slams the table. “I’ve been hounding Leon to bump up his grades. but he always brags about that term paper. I should have known it was a load of bull!” Sayaka rolls her eyes.

“S-Sorry.”

“Don’t be, but you’re not helping anyone by being his safety net. More importantly, don’t get dragged down _with him_.”

“My grades are fine. It may not look it, but I’m organized. I had enough time to write the paper and still get high marks.”

“You’re a smart cookie, Makoto.” It doesn’t much effort for Sayaka to reach over the table and ruffle his hair. The display’s a little demeaning. It shows he’s only a kid in her eyes.

“I have to be. I wouldn’t have been gotten an acceptance letter otherwise.”

There was a reason Hope's Peak was called 'Talent Town'. It was a trade school where most students got in based on scholarships for outstanding performance in one area or another. You could only get in the conventional way with top grades on a national level. Like he did.

Naturally, his acceptance into Hope's Peak would make people think "A really smart cookie."

"I'm really not. The only way I could live in the cities was to get into a good university. Halfway through high school, I bunkered down and studied my butt off." He rubbed his nape, reflecting on how much he'd missed in his youth. "I'm not smart at all. I just studied hard and had a whole lotta luck.”

Sayaka stops raking his hair, relaxing back into her seat. She appraises him before smiling. “Don’t sell yourself short. You had a goal in mind, and you achieved it. You should be proud of yourself.”

“Yeah, I-guess I am.” Makoto shows off a toothy grin. “Now that I’m here, I’ve got to make up for lost time.”

Makoto didn’t know where the bluenette’s enthusiasm came from, but it was infectious.

“Is that why you’re always jumping through clubs?” Sayaka suddenly asks.

“Huh?”

“Your first day, you joined the photography club. Then the Karaoke club on the third. The archery club the following week. And the debate club after-”

“H-how do you know all that!?” And why did it sound like her list wouldn’t have ended any time soon?

Sayaka’s response is a second off. “I’m psychic, you know.” He’s not falling for that one . . . a third time. “Just kidding. By the way. We should get our order now. I’ll have a grande mango smoothie and strawberry cake!”

The queen’s orders are absolute . . . and it was her bank card anyway.

The register comes into view. Makoto’s eyes widen upon noticing the unenthusiastic barista. A lethal beauty that would stick out _anywhere_ was in plain uniform like priceless amethyst surrounded by copper. About as stone-faced too.

“Kyoko! You work here?” He cheerfully calls out to his close friend.

With a bored expression that permits no surprise at his presence, she replies. “I’m undercover. I suspect the owner is running a crime ring.”

Makoto’s mouth forms an ‘O’ before he turns gravely serious. “Tell me if you need anything. I’ll be right over.”

Kyoko looks at him like he's a fucking idiot.

Purple irises fly to his table where the blue-haired girl tampers with her cell phone.

“Enjoying your date?” There’s a slight inflection in Kyoko’s tone.

“I-It’s not a date. I’m only helping Sayaka out with finding a gift for someone. You know Leon, right?”

“That clueless guy?” Kyoko gives him that look. The one where everything in front of her loses form and becomes just another riddle to be solved. And where Kyoko Kirigiri took interest, she obsessed. “Explain from the beginning.”

_Two minutes later._

“So you two aren’t officially on a date?”

“Nope.”

“While she’s wearing _that_?”

“Mhm.”

“And she bought mostly everything?”

“She’s really convincing, yeah.”

Kyoko’s eyes darken. “You sure are a convenient friend.”

“Thanks.”

“It’s not an admirable quality.”

“Oh…”

Kyoko heaves a sigh. “You’re nice, Makoto. Better than that, you’re _brilliant_. Don’t waste your intelligence by not using it where it counts.” Confusion is written over his face like an open book. “Think. Why would Sayaka invite you **_just_** to pick out a gift for a man she’s known longer than you have known them?”

“She said it could only be me.”

“And what’s special about _you_?”

Kyoko brings him back down to reality, like always. “I dunno.” He frowned.

Kyoko’s expression tells him he answered wrongly.

“Fine, be that way. My advice is that you don’t fall on your usual bias. Think a little harder. You’re a lot more appealing than you think.”

“Thanks, Kyoko.” He beams.

A thin, but sure smile spreads over her features. “You’re welcome. Your order will be ready in 10 minutes.”

Makoto furrows his eyebrows. Sayaka texted him the order so he wouldn’t forget the term for cup sizes, they were all so weird. Though not as weird as Kyoko knowing what they were. “How did you-"

"You are both very loud."

"Huh? I don't think-"

"Yes, you were. Now pay and scram, I have other customers to attend to."

Makoto looked back, and then front. "There's nobody behind me-"

"Ah, I hear the boss calling me from the back. If you would make it quick . . ."

Her icy stare dared an objection.

* * *

Sayaka’s mouth leaves the straw. “You were up there for a while.” Her gaze shifts to Kyoko, who was attending to another customer in the distance. “She’s pretty. Do you know her?”

Makoto clams up. Kyoko hates gossip as a rule, especially when they involved her. But for a question this innocuous, he probably didn’t need to lie. “Yeah, Kyoko and I have had the same classes all year and she’s always helping me out.” Like the few times he lost his room key, only for the lavender haired girl to find it in strange places like the back of his hoodie or the seat he took in lectures.

From the looks of it, Sayaka isn’t satisfied with that answer. “She was looking over here earlier. Are you two going out?”

Makoto barely avoids spitting out his drink. “That’s crazy. Kyoko can do a lot better than me!”

Sayaka’s expression turns as bitter as Kyoko did. “You’re too hard on yourself. Have you at least thought of one?”

“Leon keeps trying to set me up with a girl, but I’m not really sure.”

Sayaka mutters “That idiot.” under her breath, but he’d heard loud and clear.

“Did I say something wrong?”

His faux date shakes her head. “You free for the rest of the day?”

“Yeah, but-”

Sayaka wears a golden smile. One that demands compliance in a totally non-aggressive way. Too much for him to resist.

“What do you have in mind?” He asks, skittishly.

“The first step to changing the inside is starting with the outside. I’ll make you a full-fledged city-boy in no time~”

He’s thoroughly unprepared for the attention and doting Sayaka bestows on him from that point on. She drags him to whatever stores suited her fancy, buying him lots of clothes, hair dyes, and conditioners. All sorts of superfluous stuff that they don’t sell back home. Sayaka quite literally holds his arm through the ordeal. Leaving him a wordless mess at the contact

The sun sets by the time they finish. The campus already in view. They’d have been done earlier but Sayaka insisted on ending the day with a flick. For better or worse, Makoto couldn’t say no.

But he couldn’t enjoy himself. No, he did, but he couldn’t enjoy himself enjoying himself, if that made a lick of sense. It felt wrong. Like he was betraying his best friend . . . or maybe he was overthinking things. Maybe Sayaka was this friendly with everyone.

“That was a fun evening.” Sayaka mewls. He carefully looks away when he sees her top hangs too much to one side.

“Um . . . for me too.” He admits. As proof, he’d gone with only a satchel and returned with 4 shopping bags in hand and his crush hanging off his arm.

Makoto reaches his last stop in front of the boy’s dorm. “Guess we go separate ways.”

“Thanks for coming out with me again, I had so much fun.”

He nods, bashfully. His body positions to the side and walks towards the dorm entrance hall in front of him.

“Oh, Makoto. I forgot one thing.” He hears Sayaka call from behind. His upper body inches back. “What-” He drops the bags when he feels the softest pair of lips pressing against his (he wasn’t _that_ inexperienced with the female gender). Sayaka Maizono just kissed him, _is still kissing him._

She pulls back after a time, sporting a satisfied grin.

“Why?” A single word to convey his sheer incredulity.

“Think about it. Hopefully you’ll get the answer by next weekend. Ibuki’s having a sleepover party and I’d like you to come with me.”

His vocabulary is shot, so he nods.

“Text me when you’ve figured it out. Good night again, Makoto.” She says before walking into the distance.

He’s stiff as a scarecrow and light in the head.

For the coming days, he can’t concentrate on his lectures. Without fail, his thoughts return to that day and his inability to wrap his head around Sayaka’s actions.

Makoto’s ruminations get him nowhere. He returns to his dorm one evening, drained and sleep deprived. He enters his room and sees the last person he wanted to.

Leon’s relaxing on his bed, legs crossed. He sights Makoto and rises to his feet. “Dude! I’ve got something to tell you. Where have you been hiding?!”

“Uh . . . hi, Leon.”

“You sick or something? Because literally dying is the only excuse that’s bailing you out like you bailed on my party.” Leon folds his arms.

“Sorry, I’m dealing with a lot right now.”

“Spit it out.” Leon rolls his eyes.

Makoto's own grown wide with panic. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Spit. It. Out.” Leon’s persuasive. Makoto’s horrible at hiding his emotions. When something’s wrong, people _notice._

He couldn’t run from this, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t maneuver around it! “It’s about a friend of mine.” He doesn’t quite meet Leon’s eyes on the way to his seat.

“Go on.”

“Let’s say that this friend has a crush on someone. That someone happens to like _his_ best friend, and its mutual. Only she makes a move on him out of nowhere. Does that make him an awful person?”

“How hot is she?” Leon tapped his foot.

“Is that important?” Makoto arches his brow.

Leon scoffs. “ _It’s the most important thin_ g. If she’s a 7 or below, he’s total scum for breaking the bro code. But if this babe’s on fire, then I can’t blame you. Guys can’t fight a nice pair of T&A.” The self-proclaimed charmer, everyone.

A furious blush spreads across Makoto’s face. “I-Is that how it is?”

“AHA, so it _is_ about you!”

Makoto gaped, realizing he’d fallen into that ingenious trap. “I never said that! That’s not fair!”

“Don’t be a clown, Makoto. The ‘happened to a friend’ line is the biggest cliché ever. If anyone else told me, I’d think they were fucking with me. But I gotta know, who’s this friend? I thought **we** were best buds.”

Makoto’s heart sinks and his throat constricts. How hasn’t Leon figured it out? Just simple deduction should clue him in.

Leon loses patience. “Okay, before I forget what I wanted to say. Remember Enoshima right? I’m talking to a new girl with a pair as big as hers!” Leon cackles, completely oblivious to the bombshell he dropped on Makoto’s lap.

“ _What?_ ”

“Look man, I know you’re from Townieville but nobody’s _that_ innocent.” The redhead’s provocative gestures do nothing to alleviate the other boy’s confusion.

“But what about Sayaka?”

He can practically see the question marks atop Leon’s skull. “What about her?”

Makoto’s mind rattles, trying to make sense of the situation. “Didn’t you like her?” Or maybe the city’s just different?

“What are you talking about?” Leon’s as dumbstruck as he is.

Something isn’t adding up here. His rational, logical mind takes the fastest, most direct route to solving the equation. “You and Sayaka are dating, or something like that.”

Leon’s jaw slacks. “Can’t exactly be dating if we’ve never, uh, gone on a date. Where’s this coming from?”

“You seem pretty close.”

The athlete laughs nervously. “Sayaka’s my soul-sista. Always on the prowl for hotties. Competitive. We’re both musicians in the making, but that’s it! Leon Kuwata’s a free-man for life . . . and it’s not just because Sayaka rejected me during freshman year or anything.”

2/3rds of Leon’s rant and indirect confession doesn’t make it the travel to Makoto’s brain. He takes Kyoko’s advice.

He thinks.

The brunette finger touches his chin. “Did Sayaka give you anything for your birthday?”

A bulb lights in the athlete’s head. “She got me Project 'Fucking' Zombie and I’ve been dying to play. Either get your ass kicked here or my room. Pick.”

“That’s it? Nothing else?”

“Nope. Think she’s expecting a rad present for her birthday? Cuz I’m flat broke.”

Makoto blinks. “I-I don’t . . . _what_?” What was he doing on Sunday?

Leon snaps his finger at the dazed boy, receiving no reaction. “What’s got your pants in a notch? Did you think me and Sayaka were together?” He gasps, scandalously. Finally clueing in on Makoto’s predicament. Like a car that’s gone 5x over the speed limit, a crash course looms on the intersection. “Dude, did Sayaka make a move on you?!”

Makoto goes slack in Leon’s grip and falls to the floor when Leon unhands him. “Earth to Big Mac.” Leon shakes the smaller boy. Makoto doesn’t even twitch.

“Must be culture shock.” Leon backs away to the door and scrams before the body discovery announcement.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentines! I actually wrote this fic 2 years ago and completely forgot about it until recently.


End file.
